slanting a look toward his partner. Lisette Sutton sat ramrod straight in the passenger seat, her head held high, emphasizing her long, slender neck. Her mouth set in a firm line disguised the fullness of her lips—not that he’d dwelled on that in his supervisor’s office or when he’d shared his opinion in the car earlier. But he had to admit her sea green eyes had drawn his attention over and over, even though they were hidden behind those brown-framed glasses she kept fidgeting with. This FBI agent was all business. Her bearing, right down to her blond hair, a deep golden shade, pulled back into a tight bun, shouted that fact to the world. Even her outfit—black pants with a matching suit coat and a plain white blouse—supported that impression.
Maybe, like him, she wasn’t too thrilled to be babysitting a criminal like Don Saunders. He understood the need to give deals to catch the big fish in a pond of scum, but it still bothered him when he dealt with ones like Saunders. His faith was the only thing that made this palatable. In the end Saunders would get his due. He would be held accountable for his actions with the Lord.
“How much farther is it?” Lisette Sutton asked in a husky voice that almost betrayed her businesslike demeanor.
“Another fifteen minutes. The safe house is out a ways—not a lot of neighbors to wonder what’s going on.”
“Also harder for Mr. Saunders to catch a ride somewhere.”
“True.”
“Who’s with him right now?” She shifted toward him, her posture not as tense as before.
And for some reason that made the confines of his car even smaller. His gut clenched at the same time his hands did on the steering wheel. “Marshals Janice Wallace and Neil Simms. The other on the team is Quinn Parker, who will be at the house later.”
He took the exit off Interstate 70. At the intersection of the off ramp and a country road, he came to a stop and made the mistake of glancing at her. His gaze collided with hers. A faint red colored her cheeks, and she turned away.
Her stiff carriage returned, her shoulders thrust back. The temperature in the car dropped even more. He made a right turn onto the two-lane highway, a wall of mountains on his left blanketed with snow. At least the roads were cleared.
“Is our destination up in the mountains?” She finally broke the silence a few miles down the road.
“No, at the foot of one. The area around here is beautiful and worth exploring in your free time. Have you had a chance to do much sightseeing?”
“No.”
“How long have you been in Denver?”
“Six months. How about you?”
“Two years.” About the extent he would stay in any one place. That was why he had applied for the open position in St. Louis. Colton was bummed that he didn’t get it. “How do you like Denver so far? Have you found a place to stay yet?” he asked, trying to play nice with the Ice Queen and learn about his new partner.
“When I first moved here, I lived in one of those extended-stay hotels. Hated it. I was out searching for a place every spare moment I had. I found a nice acceptable apartment in only a week.”
“I still haven’t gotten around to finding an apartment. I don’t mind the extended-stay hotel I’m at. It’s just a place to sleep. I’m looking to move to another assignment when this case is over with.” Why did he reveal that? He didn’t usually offer much personal information even to someone he was working with.
“During that week I felt like I lived out of my suitcase. Hotels always give me such a temporary feeling.”
He shrugged. “I’m used to that. It doesn’t bother me. No obligation on my part. No lease.” There was a time it had bothered him. But as a child, after his third move to yet another foster home, he’d begun to accept that would be his normalcy, and he’d better get used to it. So everywhere he lived he’d learned to accept it was only temporary, and eventually he embraced that way of life. Even as an adult he moved a lot, usually only staying at a post no more than a year or two. It was easier that way. He didn’t become invested in his coworkers’ lives. So much better when he left if he wasn’t too close to his coworkers.
Colton turned onto a gravel road still covered with snow that winded through some tall pines and aspens. He called the marshals in the cabin where Saunders was being kept. “I’m nearly there. I’m glad to see no fog.” He gave his team members the code with the last sentence to let them know that he hadn’t been compromised. “Is everything all right?”
“Just peachy. Nothing unusual has happened,” Marshal Janice Wallace said, her voice getting lower with each word. “Except this witness is driving me crazy. Otherwise, Neil and I are having a grand ole time.”
“The cavalry is here to rescue you two.” He peered through the trees as he approached a bend in the road. “In fact, I’m pulling up now.” He took the curve, coming upon a log cabin in a small clearing with various evergreens mixed in with deciduous trees surrounding the open space. A blanket of pristine snow stretched out from the safe house.
“Yeah, we saw you coming and cheered. I’m surprised you didn’t hear us from the main highway,” Marshal Wallace said in reference to the two hidden cameras posted at the beginning of the gravel road.
“Was that the noise I heard? Glad you cleared that up.” Chuckling, Colton disconnected.
“Did something happen?” Agent Sutton—no, at least in his thoughts she was Lisette—panned the area as she unbuckled her seat belt.
“No, other than Saunders. He has such a winning personality that it doesn’t take long for him to drive a person crazy with his complaints and whining. When we had that incident on the way to the airport in St. Louis, he griped the whole way that I was trying to kill him. Believe me, if I had wanted to, he would be dead now.”
Lisette’s intriguing green eyes widened.
He grinned. “Just kidding.”
She blinked and pushed the door open, her professional facade completely in place. “I know that.” Her hand went to her glasses to straighten them.
He made her nervous. That was her sign—adjusting her glasses.
Marshal Wallace swung the door open and stood in the entrance. The tall woman with short black hair smiled. “Nice to see you two. Come in.” She stepped to the side, introducing herself to Lisette as they shook hands.
Colton entered the cabin behind Lisette, who paused a few feet inside to scan the large room with a massive fireplace along the back wall, a kitchenette off to the right and a hallway that led to the single bedroom. He liked the defensible layout. There was only one way into the cabin with one window in the bedroom; there were none in the bathroom or kitchen and three in the living area. Off to the side he noticed the computer sitting with shots of various camera views of the terrain and road near the safe house.
“Where’s Saunders?”
Marshal Neil Simms swiveled around in the chair before the laptop. “Hi, I’m Neil, Lisette.” He smiled, then turned his attention to Colton. “Still sleeping. He was up late complaining of his digs. You should wake him, or he’ll be up late again tonight when Janice and I have to take over.”
“But he no
